This driving/shooting game is set in the American
southwest, in an alternate 1976 where the fuel shortage is out of control.
Vigilantes cruise the tarmac, trying to protect the last gas stations
from destruction by power hungry oil companies. The player assumes the
role of Groove Champion who becomes a vigilante to avenge his sister's
death. Under the tutelage of Taurus, he must single-handedly thwart
Antonio Malochio, the dastardly villain behind the terrorist attacks.
This fun game has souped-up muscle cars laden with firepower and a great
soundtrack thick with slap-bass and wah-peddled guitars recalling the
theme from Starsky and Hutch and the danger music from Charlie's Angels.
The environments and vehicles, even on the lowest detail settings, are
strikingly realistic. And the dialogue is, for the most part, great
though the hero's comments during combat sound strangely out of place
and get a bit repetitive. The driving simulation is also superb with
suspension models, and the way your car handles off-road and under the
strain of varying damage types. Ramming an enemy car and then jamming
into reverse and blasting away while he struggles for control is truly
exhilarating, and using the handbrake to spin 180 and take out some
chump behind you is awesome. The game can be played in a straightforward,
17 mission campaign (labeled "The Trip") with wildly varying difficulty,
or a series of individual scenarios. The missions themselves are great
and really diverse: some follow a straightforward, "kill 'em all" directive;
some require you to race opponents (usually followed by killing everyone
you were racing against); and others simply require you to drive, under
heavy opposition, from point A to point B with your vehicle in some
semblance of shape. The maps are enormous, and you can drive for what
seems like miles off the main course and still see buildings and other
cars driving on the roads. You can only use one car except for the last
level in The Trip campaign. There are dozens of vehicles in individual
missions or in multiplayer skirmishes. There is actually a "Interstate
'76 Gold Edition", which is the game with GLIDE and Rendition 3D support.
See also: #Interstate
'76: Nitro Pack